TurboBooster as primary seat?

My DD will be 7 in March, 45-46in, 45 lbs. She is in a Regent as a primary seat in our van (2008 Town & Country, captain's chair, side-impact airbags) and in DH's Jeep she rides in a high-back Turbo. She has been asking for a booster for the van and at her age/size/maturity I know she will be okay.

With that being said, she wants another Turbo to use in the van. One with Gracopedic foam that she saw at BRU. She doesn't like confining headwings and has loved the openness of the Regent. We had a Parkway for awhile and she HATED the headwings. She is not a car sleeper. We do take 6-7 hour trips to visit my parents approx. every other month but she barely ever sleeps.

Would you be comfortable with a Turbo as your kid's primary seat at this size? I don't really want to shell out over $200 for an Oobr (and DH would kill me) and I really don't know if she'd like a Vivo either and can't find one IRL to try. I guess she will probably be in a backless booster in the next 2 yrs so I don't know if I want another strictly highback booster...but I would never want to compromise her safety. The Monterey was too wide for her, she is thin/narrow. Does the Vivo have confining headwings? Would a Turbo w/ gracopedic foam be comfortable for a 7 hour trip?? Any advice would be great...

I would be fine, but my oldest son has been riding in a turbo since he was 5 or 6(and I can't remember his stats from then) as his primary seat (he'll be 10 in July).

I can't remember if we've taken a long long trip since he went from the CarGo to the Turbo, but I know that in the CarGo (in booster mode, shudder)---where his only padding was the seat cover (it was a very basic model), he was fine for a 12 hour trip from here to Florida, with no complaints.

The Vivo is much more confining than the TB. Has side wings and deeper head wings. However, it does have very soft, plush fabric. My Big Lots had some last month. I don't know whether I would use a TB as a primary seat but some people here do. I don't have any kids so don't have to make those decisions yet.

If the Vivo/PW/Monterey headwings are too confining, I'd try to find another booster with a little more SIP than the Turbo for a main seat. But that's just my :twocents: We have a Compass B540 that feels much sturdier than the TB and has more side depth than the really confining boosters. If it's the TB w/back on or no back, I'd definately go for the HB version, though.

MY dd is about that size, and loves her tb. I think it will fit very well. I do not think it will compromise safety in the least.

If she won't go for deeper wings for more side support, then the turbo is fine! I'd rather she be comfortable and stay in position more than anything, and at 7, I think she has the right to weigh in on the decision.

Thanks everyone who responded and gave input. Yes, she loves her Turbo and since the headwings aren't deep, stays in position. It's also a great fit for her and I like how the lapbelt is in good position. We have a Compass b510 that I am selling because it doesn't fit her very well and the lapbelt seems to ride up too high on her abdomen.
Hopefully she is comfortable on our longer trips-I guess we will see!
Thanks again.

my sons used a turbo as their main seat for a few years. i was perfectly comfortable with it & we took a 12 hour drive each way & they did just fine in them. no major complaints that i wasn't complaining about either. when their bottom ached so did mine. that meant time for potty break, stand & stretch. i love the turbo. i love the monterey too but as with you my DD just doesn't fit it. the turbo is a perfect fit for her & she loves it. i think my DD will love it more when she gets her pink cover. LOL

My girls had turbos as their primary seats for years. One had the foam and one did not. Both were comfy. I was fine with my dd1 in the turbo- she slept great in it. Dd2, however, needs support to stay in place and the vivo works great for her.

If my budget stays the same, I plan on using Turbos for my DS when I start booster training him at age 5. I have friends who have used them PROPERLY with their 6 year olds for over a year now and they love it. The kids love it too.

My 7.5 and 8.5 (9 March 6) year olds are in turbo boosters and neither of them have complained at all. We go visit my family every 2 months or so (4.5 hours one way not counting any stops) and they have been fine then too. My 8 year old usually falls asleep when we travel and she stays comfortably in position (my 7 year old rarely falls asleep when traveling, but the few times she has, she's been fine too).

If she's comfy in the Turbo and it fits her well, IMO it's fine for a primary seat at her age. The only issue that might come up is that as her legs get longer she might find that the turbo seat is a bit shallow and doesn't support her legs as much as she'd like (see the pics here for an illustration of what I mean) - this could be remedied by letting her use a lightweight footstool like this IKEA one